I Dared to Dream - A Short Story
Your story is about an executive at the top of a skyscraper pointing at random bits of sky.
Your story is about an executive at the top of a skyscraper pointing at random bits of sky.
Sylvie shuddered. It was going to be a long day, she just knew it. From the moment she had stepped outside her apartment into the rain, Sylvie knew that something was not quite right in the world. Though, she supposed this was partially her fault. She had given in to it again, leaving the medication on the counter. Sylvie cursed her foolishness. It had been years, but here she was again, right back where she had started.
She rode the city bus to work, just as she always did. Usually, Sylvie would have enjoyed the ride, but today, she was anxious to arrive at the office. Several times she could have sworn that something was watching her from under the seat in front of her. Another time, a small voice called her name, but she could not see anyone talking to her. Sylvie hated this side of herself, the part of her that could not tell her whether or not things were real.
Through her morning meetings, Sylvie hardly said anything; she had nothing to add. Within about five minutes, she stopped trying to pay attention. She couldn’t focus anyway. Instead of taking notes, she drew pictures in the margins of the page. Her mind wandered freely, examining aspects of her life that she hadn’t given much thought to lately. She felt a strange freedom, but she was unable to find any comfort in it.
As soon as the meeting ended, an overwhelming feeling of anxiety hit Sylvie. The walls appeared to be inching closer, the ceiling lower than usual. This wasn’t right.
Sylvie ran out of the room, barely managing to stay on her feet. The pain was back again, worse than ever. The door to the roof was on her left, the closest exit. She pushed it open, careful not to touch it with her bare hand. Sylvie staggered out onto the rough surface. Containing her emotions was proving to be nearly impossible.
He promised that he would never leave her. Everything was supposed to be alright- it had to. They had worked to make sure of it.
And yet here she was, alone. Sylvie wailed, dropping to her knees. It was almost like she could feel him next to her, but he was still so far away. She wished that she could move on as easily as Michael had. But her disorder made that impossible.
“WHY? WHY DID YOU HAVE TO LEAVE?” Sylvie shouted at the rain clouds. She threw her arms over her head, pointing up at the sky. “DIDN’T YOU KNOW WHAT THIS WOULD DO TO ME?”
But of course he did. Michael understood everything about her. That was why he had left. He knew that they could not make each other truly happy. Now he had moved on with his life. He had married, and she hated him for it.
Sylvie looked down, ashamed of her selfishness. How could she pretend that it was his fault? If she had been in his position, she probably would have done the same thing.
She turned her wrist, rotating it so she could read the words that were tattooed there. I dared to dream. 05-04-08 It was a reminder of the happiest moments of her life, the day that she had met him. That day, she put aside all of her worries and took a chance.
Sylvie wept for a while, not caring that she was becoming increasing wet from the downpour. She let herself wallow in misery until her tears ran dry. Sylvie was glad that nobody ever came out onto the roof, for it would have been mortifying to have an audience to her hysterics.
When she was sure that her legs would carry her again, Sylvie stood up. A few deep breaths later, and she was feeling slightly more human. Sylvie started back towards the door, but stopped just before it. She turned away and looked to the sky once more, an accusing finger pointing upward.
“I will not let you run my life anymore. I will be happy again, just you wait.” Sylvie spoke to herself, to that part of her that she so despised. She looked down her arm at her wrist again, shaking her head. “I may have dared to dream then, but now, I dare… to live.”
